As is well known to any owner of whitewall tires, the whitewall portion of the sidewall becomes soiled and discolored very rapidly upon exposure to the dirt and grease of the highway. Since whitewalls are placed on tires primarily for reason of appearance, this rapid discoloring and darkening of the whitewalls detract substantially from the value of having whitewall tires. Unfortunately, there has not been an easy way of efficiently removing these discoloring soilants and thereby retain the attractiveness of the whitewall tire.
Since most of the discoloring soilants are difficult to remove, an implement, such as a brush is necessary in restoring the attractiveness of the whitewall. However brushes of the prior art (see for instance U.S. Pat. Nos. 389,531 and 509,237) are not readily adapted to the efficient cleaning of a whitewall, due to the shape characteristics of the whitewalls and its position on the sidewall of the tire. The whitewall is recessed slightly from the sidewall of the tire to form a groove in the tire. Due to this groove it is imperative for the effective cleaning of the whitewall that the brush be the same dimension as the width of the whitewall and that it contain means for maintaining it in contact with the whitewall.
The problem of maintaining a brush in contact with the whitewall as it is guided around the tire is especially critical when the brush reaches the lower portion of the tire. This problem is created by the inability of the wrist to fully twist in concert with the brush which is revolving about the tire.
One solution to this difficulty in cleaning the whitewall of the tire has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,832,085 to Chamberlain. This patent discloses that a whitewall portion of a sidewall may be cleaned by dismounting the tire from the automobile and placing it on a base. A brush may then be mechanically revolved about the tire. The obvious disadvantage of this apparatus is that it requires the removal of the tire from the automobile for its utilization.
Another disadvantage of the brushes of the prior art is that they fail to facilitate the application of the full effective force that is being applied to the brush in cleaning the tire. Much of the power being expended by the use, especially at the bottom of the stroke, is wasted in continually maintaining the alignment of the brush with respect to the whitewall. Therefore, maximum efficient cleaning power is not attained which forces the user to exert greater energies than necessary in obtaining a whitewall which demonstrates desirable coloration.
It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a device for the efficient cleaning of whitewall tires.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a brush for cleaning whitewall tires which will fit into the grooves of the whitewalls so that the bristles are retained in contact with the whitewall and that the entire whitewall of a tire can be cleaned in a single step without necessitating removal of the brush from the groove.
It is also an object of this invention to provide a brush for cleaning whitewall tires having a base and pattern of bristles which conform to the curvature of the groove of the whitewall.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a brush for cleaning whitewall tires which is easily grasped and controlled during use.
A further object of the invention is to provide a brush for cleaning whitewall tires requiring minimum energy input for effective utilization.